


new character unlocked!

by ethandiesofdysentery



Series: multiplayer mode [2]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: DID/OSDD, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Established Relationship, Light Angst, M/M, its abt introjects lads, its actually osdd but if i tag that you guys wont know what i mean, theres another character but shhhhh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:14:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27802123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ethandiesofdysentery/pseuds/ethandiesofdysentery
Summary: There's someone new here.///OR: Ethan gets a Fun New Alter who he is Not Uncomfortable With In Any Way and it Totally Does Not Make Him Doubt Himself At All.
Relationships: Mark Fischbach/Ethan Nestor
Series: multiplayer mode [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2034112
Comments: 17
Kudos: 163





	new character unlocked!

**Author's Note:**

> hey its been WAY too long since player select. heres a sequel, in which the video game metaphors continue. i HEAVILY recommend you read the first fic if you haven't yet.
> 
> dedicated to me and my partner both having new splits recently, both of which are introjects, both of which we adore but also Man Introjects Are An Experience. 
> 
> player select was mild projection. this is pretty much me writing about myself and then changing the names. people who have been following my fics recently can probably work this shit out.
> 
> NOTE: in the first fic i established ethan as having DID, but let me amend that - since this is based off my own experience, he probably actually has OSDD-1b. if you're curious about the difference, i'm linking a rly helpful youtube video in the end notes !!
> 
> that's enough notes for now, though!! enjoy!!  
> \- syd <3

It starts with a feeling.

Ethan's looking through Unus Annus fanart, and out of nowhere, he feels a swell of emotion he can't identify. He's used to feelings that aren't his, it comes with the territory, but he can't pinpoint who or what is the source this one.

"Everyone good?" he asks aloud, setting his phone down. Inside his head, he hears a mumbled chorus of " _yeah_ "s. He shrugs, picking up the phone again. It sounded like everyone was accounted for, so he can't figure out why he'd felt that unnamed feeling for just a moment there.

(Well, he can. But he does his best to ignore the nagging thought at the back of his head - _someone new is here_.)

///

Ethan hasn't had a new alter since he was seventeen. He's used to having spaces in his mind occupied by other people, but he's not used to having a steadily growing space that he knows nothing about. It's not a great feeling.

///

"Hey, I've met everyone, right?"

Ethan blinks, refocusing on the room, and looks up to Mark. Mark is leaning against the kitchen counter, looking at the table where Ethan has been chilling for the past however-long. It takes him a second to understand what Mark means, but then he says, "Oh, yeah, you have."

Mark frowns, drumming his fingers against the edge of the counter. "Huh. Okay."

Ethan gets a sinking feeling in his chest. "...why?" he asks, not really wanting to hear the answer.

Mark shrugs, pushing himself off the counter and crossing the room to sit across from Ethan. "I don't know. I just could've sworn I was talking to someone I didn't know for a second there."

Ethan's heart skips a beat. That's the nail in the proverbial coffin. There's someone new here, and whoever they are, they've talked to Mark more than they've talked to _him_. But hell if he's gonna let Mark know how freaked he is. He just shrugs instead. 

"Probably just Mika fucking with you," he answers, even though he and Mika have long since established ground rules with each other that pretty explicitly include "don't fuck around about new alters". He gets a short " _no I'm not_ " in the back of his head, but Mark seems to buy it. Sort of.

"Okay," he says. "So, I don't want to cook. Takeout tonight?"

Ethan smiles weakly at his boyfriend, pointedly ignoring the voices trying to get his attention. "Yeah. That's good."

///

Okay, so Ethan knows who it is. He's known since that weird twinge while looking at fanart a month ago. But he's not going to admit it yet. He's never had an introject before, and he's not planning on starting now.

If he ignores it, maybe it won't be real. 

/// 

Introjects, explained in simple terms, are alters that are internalized versions of existing characters or people. Ethan understands that some people have them. Objectively, he understands that they're a normal occurrence. But in reference to himself, he can't reconcile the concept. It makes him think, for the first time in a while, _what if I'm just faking all this?_

It seems normal when other people have introjects. But Ethan having one seems entirely abnormal. 

Especially _this_ one.

"I'm probably wrong," he says to no one, nodding along as if assuring himself it's true.

" _You know I'm here_ ," says an unfamiliar voice.

Ethan pays as little attention as he fucking can.

///

He's getting more persistent. 

Ethan is trying to have a normal conversation with Mark about taking the dogs for a walk later, god damn it, but the voice keeps interrupting.

"Do you want to just take them to the park at the corner, or should we walk further?" Mark asks, leaning down to scratch Chica behind the ears.

"I don't mind walking further," Ethan replies.

" _You can't ignore me forever._ "

"You good?" Mark asks, frowning. "You're getting a little spacey there. You sure you're good to go for a walk?"

Ethan nods enthusiastically. "Yeah, I'm good. I'm excited to hang with the pups." He gestures towards Chica, still rubbing against Mark's legs, then over at Spencer and Henry for emphasis. (Henry had been an impulse adoption on Amy's part, and had led to the No Bringing Pets Home Without Talking To EVERYONE First rule, but Ethan still loves him.)

" _I'm going to tell him._ "

Ethan sits bolt upright, eyes wide. " _No you're not_ ," he says internally. 

"Eth? You sure you're good?" Mark asks. "You look like you're talking to someone." He looks worried, damn it. Ethan hates to worry Mark. But before he can apologize, the voice speaks up again.

" _You just acknowledged me._ "

 _Ohshit_ , Ethan thinks. He's just fucked up his _ignore this forever_ philosophy. 

"Yeah, sorry, just..." Ethan racks his brain for an excuse. "...talking about the dogs," he finishes weakly.

" _Nice one. Smooth._ " Ethan is about to freak again, but then he realizes that one was just Mika. He exhales heavily.

"...okay." Mark clearly doesn't believe him, but he doesn't press further. He just goes to get the dogs' leashes.

The new voice doesn't come back, and Ethan knows why. _He's proved his point._

///

Ethan wakes up in his and Mark's bed, and sits up, yawning. Mark is already out of bed, which isn't weird. He's much more of a morning person than Ethan is. Ethan slides out of bed, and heads to the kitchen, smelling the fresh coffee and smiling. Mark has undoubtedly already made his favorite over-sweetened coffee - as Mark himself puts it, _you like a little coffee with your sugar, babe._ When he makes it to the kitchen, Mark is there, Ethan's syrupy brew in hand, but as he hands it over, instead of a kiss and a _good morning, love_ , Ethan gets a, "We need to talk."

Ethan's heart stops for a hot second as his mind cycles through all the possibilities those four words hold. _We're breaking up. I did something wrong. Someone else did something wrong. Or-_

"I met Unus last night."

Yeah. Okay. Or that.

Ethan takes a sharp breath. "I don't - uh, that's not." He can't find the right words to deny that. He shrinks back a little, instinctively hoping someone else might step forward and have this conversation for him. It's Amy's voice this time. " _No, Eth. You've got to handle this._ " Ethan takes a deep breath and tries again. "Who?" _Yeah, that was smooth._

"He said you'd say something like that," Mark replies, taking a sip of his own coffee, keeping direct eye contact as he does. "And he said not to let you pretend you don't know about him."

Ethan's stomach twists. Okay. So he has to acknowledge it now. _He introjected his fictional persona for a year-long YouTube channel._

" _That wasn't so hard, was it?_ " Ethan scrunches up his nose at the voice - at _Unus_ \- but doesn't give a response. 

"He seems nice, Ethan," Mark continues, unfazed by Ethan's reaction to nothing. "I think he means well." He cocks his head to the side in that way that's both adorable and infuriating all at once. "What's your problem with him?"

Ethan can't bring himself to be surprised at the straightforward question. Mark usually says what he means, especially to Ethan. He sighs. He's failed to put these feelings into words before, and here he goes again.

"I mean, he..." Ethan sighs, sipping weakly at his coffee, trying to give himself time to think. "He existed as a concept before he existed in _here_ ," he finally manages, tapping his head in demonstration. "It makes me feel..." He groans, scrubbing a hand down his face as he tries to find the words to express his feelings without sounding like an idiot. He can't. "I don't know. It makes me feel _fake_. It's hard to explain but, it's like..." He sighs again. "Having a character that already existed become someone that lives in my head is so _sensational_. It feels like such a made-up thing. It makes me think _this is too weird to be real, so I must be faking it_. And it doesn't make sense and I know it's not his fault but..." He trails off, running out of words, but it feels like he's already managed to express his thoughts better than he ever could've expected.

"Ah." Mark nods. "I see." He looks thoughtful for a moment, before breaking into a tiny smile. "Ethan," he says, "I talked to Unus for an hour last night. Do you remember that?"

Ethan scratches the back of his head. "Uh...no..." Mark knows this already, though. Why is he asking?

"Do you think you could fake that, Eth?" Mark says, beginning to look blatantly amused. "Do you think it's possible to fake not remembering a conversation that I can tell you definitely happened? What about all the times I've talked to Amy and Mika and Noah? What about the _diagnosis_ you have, Ethan?" Ethan's face is getting red. He simultaneously feels reassured and _really stupid_. "You aren't faking shit, babe."

Ethan chuckles weakly, turning his eyes to the floor. "Okay. You've made your point."

Mark laughs, setting down his mug so he can pull Ethan into a bone-crushing hug. "Unus really does seem chill, Eth. I'm excited to get to know him."

"Yeah," Ethan mumbles into Mark's shoulder, a smile on his face. "Me too."

**Author's Note:**

> VIDEO ON THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DID AND OSDD: https://youtu.be/jWXt55nof9o
> 
> thanks for reading !! comments and kudos make my day !! shoutout to any systems reading this you're doing fuckin great
> 
> (and sidenote - i got asked a lot of questions on the first fic so i'm happy to open the comments section up to any questions you might have !! im happy to answer them, just keep in mind i'm not a professional and my answers will be based off my own experience!! <3 and im also happy to take requests or ideas for continuations of this series - im excited to get back to writing it!)


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